Andrew Poturalski’s Winner Secures First Shootout Victory in Coachella Valley History
The Firebirds swept the weekend series from the Henderson Silver Knights with a 3-2 shootout win at the Dollar Loan Center. Brogan Rafferty and Alexander True scored in regular while Andrew Poturalski’s goal in the shootout sealed the win for Coachella Valley.
It only took 27:14 for the first goal of the contest to be scored, as Brogan Rafferty collected the puck at the right point and wristed it to the cage. The shot flew through traffic and past Silver Knights’ netminder Michael Hutchison to give the Firebirds a 1-0 lead. Henderson responded after killing a penalty thanks to a breakaway goal from Jonas Rondbjerg to tie the game at 11:34.
The Firebirds took the lead halfway through the third period when Alexander True sniped a shot over the shoulder of Hutchinson to make it 2-1. The assists belonged to Jesper Froden and Tye Kartye. Henderson tied the game on a rebound goal from Pavel Dorofeyev with at 13:51 of the period.
After overtime concluded, the Firebirds participated in their first shootout of the season. Tye Kartye, Shane Wright, and Andrew Poturalski all scored goals in the shootout while Christopher Gibson made a save on Sakari Manninen to set up Poturalski’s winning goal.
Gibson made 25 saves in the win as the Firebirds move to 11-4-2-0 on the season. Coachella Valley finished 0-for-3 on the powerplay and 6-for-6 on the penalty kill.
Read the game’s box score HERE.
NEXT GAME: Coachella Valley heads to San Jose for a matchup against the Barracuda on Friday, December 10. Puck drop is scheduled for 7pm PT.
The Firebirds home opener will take place at Acrisure Arena, the newest world-class concert and sports venue designed specifically for the Coachella Valley, on Sunday, December 18, 2022, against the Tucson Roadrunners. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:00pm PT.